Troubling Attractions
by Star Sapphirex
Summary: After Sakura's father 'mysteriously' dies, she is faced with paying his debt to a Japanese mafia. In order to avoid them, she and Touya move to the United States. A fluffy tale of conspiracy when drama with 'newfound' friends conflict with danger... SxS
1. So the Advenure Begins

**After Sakura's father mysteriously dies, she is faced with paying his debt to a mob gang. In order to avoid them, she and Touya move to the United States. Sakura has drama here and there with her new-found "friends". What is going on?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own CCS!**

**Attractions with Trouble --Prologue **

Somewhere in Tomoeda+

_Damn…he is catching up to me,_ Sakura thought. She was getting tired fast, which was obvious for the fact that she had been running for about half an hour now.

"Big brother, _puff_ this would be _pant_ a great time for you to come to my rescue…_puff_..._ pant_."

Just as she turned the corner, an ES 300 Lexus, pearl-colored with a gold bottom, pulled up. The window rolled down and the face of her brother came into view.

"Hey, get in!" commanded Touya.

Sakura didn't bother opening the door. As she jumped into the open window, and Touya speeded off to who-knows-where.

Sakura took a few deep breaths before she asked, "Hey thanks. Where are we going anyway?"

"To the airport…we can't stay in Japan any longer," Touya said with his eyes concentrating on the road.

Her eyes widened, and then she turned to face him, "Hoe! You can't be serious!"

He was still looking at the road ahead, but she could tell he was very serious--dead serious. This was all her fault. Not only does she have to now leave the country, but also dragged her older brother into the same mess.

**Beginning of Flash Back **

"It is time for you to pay your father's debt, Kinomoto."

"Hoe? What debt? Who ARE you?" Sakura was utterly confused. It wasn't everyday that an older **man **would pull her into an **alleyway **on her way **home **from Tomoyo's house asking her to pay a **debt**. Usually they would say some cheesy pick-up line and ask for her phone number.

"The debt is the money YOUR father borrowed from me that YOU will be paying for him. My name is of no concern to you." The man was getting impatient very quickly.

"Well, since I didn't know about it, can't you give me a month or something?"

"No. In your father's will, he specifically said that YOU had the money to pay me back. I will be forced to kill you if you don't give me the 1, 000, 000 dollars right this minute."

This guy was serious. She didn't know what to do, so she did what first came to her head. Her mood "unexpectedly" changed, and she gave him a weak glare and then smirked, "Heh, you won't take me alive!" With that she ran for her life.

**End of Flash Back **

Remembering this made her feel very depressed. Also, her sudden courage surprised her. She had so many questions. Such as why her father **mysteriously **died, why he said that **she** would pay off his debt and not her brother, why did he not pay the debt off himself, what relations did **her father **have with** this man**. Her own brother didn't know about any of this or so she thought. She began to frown.

"Ah, don't worry, squirt. I already packed all our belongings, and they are in the trunk." He was kind of smiling. _I don't know what father did or what is exactly going on,but what I do know is that I will protect you as your only older brother, a promise I made to mom years ago._

"Thanks a lot, big brother, I owe you a million (literally)," Sakura said sighing, not caring that he called her a squirt, "By the way, where did you snag this fancy little car?"

"A friend lent it to me. He'll pick it up from the airport later."

"Ro0oite," said Sakura rolling her eyes. _It was a she and he bribed her into giving it to him._

On the airplane+

Sakura took her seat. "So bro, where are we flying to?"

"America. It's too damn huge; there is no way he will find us…well…at least for a while." Touya said this while putting some things in the upper cartridge.

"Will we ever go back to Japan?" asked Sakura with much hope.

"We will, Sakura…we will." He kissed her forehead before he took his seat next to her.

Tomoyo's house+

"_RING RING! (at least 10x)"_

"Eriol, she isn't picking up the phone. Where could that auburn-haired-fourteen-year-old girl be?" Tomoyo was getting worried. She distinctly remembered her telling Sakura that she would be calling her when she got home and she doubted that it took Sakura 3 hours to get home.

_Why is Eriol so quiet? _She turned to face him and found him staring at her frowning.

"Eriol, do you know something?"

"…."

"Hello? Did I do something?"

"Huh? What? No, why?"

"It looked like you were frowning at me…but…you usually look content when looking at me," said Tomoyo playfully smiling.

He realized this and blushed. "Uh…um…no, heh-ehe," He coughed, "But I do recall seeing her brother being rather uptight lately." _Phew…that was a good save, Eriol, but I think she knows you like the way she looks. Those foOine legs of hers, her sapphire eyes, her silky hair, her smooth skin and…AHAH! She's looking at me, andI think she knows I'm thinking about her. Okay, just smoothly look away…_

Tomoyo started laughing when she saw him look away blushing again. _Maybe I should wear skirts more often, HAHAHAHA! _

TBC…

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REVIEW PLEASE! Tell me what you think, so I can see if I should continue this fic or not. Arigatou (Thanks)! 


	2. New Life, New Experiences

_Disclaimer: _I don't own CCS, so don't sue me…I got no more money…

_Italics _ARE thoughts

**Attractions withTrouble --Chapter 1 **

3 years later in New York+

_Oh my gosh…I can't believe it. It's been so0o long since I've seen Japan. And that man hasn't found me yet, _thought Sakura leisurely walking down the busy streets of New York to work. She has a part-time job at a Starbuck's. It is about 10:30 a.m.

Opening the door, Sakura quickly puts on an apron and joins her co-worker, named Meilin, who was her best-new-found friend in America. Meilin is a sophomore in college while Sakura is a senior in high school. She gets along very well with Sakura even though she was older, but Touya is a totally different story although he is closer to her age.

"Hey Sakura!" said Meilin really excited to see her friend at work.

"Hi Mei."

"How was your weekend off?"

"Okay."

Meilin eyes her oddly, "Only okay?"

"Yeah…" Sakura sighed.

Meilin thought inquisitively for a minute and said, "Maybe you need some excitement in your life. Oh, how about joining me later on to club Revolution and get our grooves on? And maybe meet some hott guys." She winked.

"Um…naw, its okay. I'm--"

"Hey, I want to order, women!" said a customer anxiously and irritably waiting. Sakura turned to face him, and she was struck by how cute he was. He has brown messy hair and chocolate eyes that could see into your soul. He was wearing a somewhat-tight-white T-shirt that revealed his nice tone and a pair of black jeans.

"…uh…okay. What do you want?" Sakura was blushing and was looking at the cash register. She took his order. Then watched Meilin gave him his drink, and then stared at him walking off to a table in the far corner. _Wow, nice ass_ thought Sakura.

"Yo, Sakura. He's cute, huh?" Meilin noticed the attraction Sakura had for the guy.

"Oh yeah, totally..," she replied dreamily but then said realizing, "I-I mean sorta.. no w-wait no." Sakura was hesitating and blushing from embarrassment.

"I know him. He's a distant cousin, the DJ at Revolution. The girls there can't get enough of him. Most of the guys envy him. Others just want to beat the crap out of him."

"O really, then…I guess I'm not busy after all. Is 7:00 ok?" said Sakura smiling.

"Sure. Can you meet me outside of your apartment building? I don't want to see Touya glaring at me again. Sakura, if looks could kill, I would've died five times when I thought I could have only died once!" She shivered a bit.

Sakura laughs as she remembered when Touya first saw and met Meilin.

**Begin of Flashback**

"Hey, onii-chan, I'd like you to meet Meilin Li."

Touya looked like he had never seen a good-looking girl before. However, the next second, he instantly began to frown and glare at her like he had changed his mind.

" Hi, nice to meet you." Meilin gave one of her best smiles. After seeing him glare, she gave a nervous laugh, told Sakura she had to go, and walked off or rather speeded off as fast as possible.

**End of Flashback**

"Haha, alright then." said Sakura while thinking, _thanks Mei, you have no idea how much this will take my mind of things that I don't want to remember._

Syaoran's POV+

_Man, those girls should get fired. _

_They don't know when to shut up. _

_All women are the same little-shallow-ditzy-nitwits. _

_I need a new job…_

I was really stressed out. At least coffee relieved most of it. Hopefully, coffee is all I'll ever need. Being a junior in college, **and** playing soccer, **and** a DJ at one of the hottest clubs, **and** having girls chase after you all night, **and** guys trying to kill you all day was no easy stroll in the park.

_That girl with the auburn hair was kinda cute though. _

_  
She didn't have pounds of make-up on her face. _

_It was natural beauty with a hint of lip gloss and light-blue eye shadow that brought out her emerald eyes…_

_HEY Shaoran, what ARE YOU doing?_

I kicked myself mentally for thinking that.

I was supposed to be concentrating on my schooling and job. I don't have time for a girlfriend. She will definitely add on to my already-high-stress level.

_Women look at me and want sexual intimacy. _

_I bet if I were a hunchback, they would be half way around the world to avoid me…haha_

_…hmm…so they are going to the club tonight?_

_Hopefully that auburn haired girl will come and see me do my stuff._

_What? What are you thinking Syaoran?_

I continue to sip my bitter espresso slowly while secretly eyeing that emerald girl behind the counter and thinking about the night to come even though I know I shouldn't, but something is dragging me into the game of love and romance…

TBC…

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Kinda cheesy… well REVIEW please and then I'll update! 


	3. Drama in Four Places at Once

Disclaimer: Yada yada yada, me no owny CCS, mm-kay? Mmkay...

_italics _**are thoughts**

**Attractions with Trouble -- Chapter 2**

Normal POV

Sakura and Mei got off work at the same time, which was 6:00 pm. They said their quick good-byes and rushed their separate ways to get ready for the " 'girls' night out".

At Sakura's Apartment+

"Hey Onii-chan, I'm gonna go out and I'll be home by about midnight," said Sakura rushing through the front door. Touya was skimming through the newspaper while sipping some juice.

"What for? Wait… Did that snobby girl Melee or McUgly drag you into this?" He asked looking up from the newspaper. When she didn't answer, he murmured, Ach…I hate that girl.

Sakura heard it and was annoyed. She didn't know why her brother hated Meilin soo much! Even though it is amusing watching the spark between him and Meilin, she was going to find the underlying cause of it for Meilin's sake and their friendship.

"You know what? First of all, her name is Meilin! Second, she didn't drag me into this. I decided out of my own free will. Third, Why do you hate her? What did she ever do to you? You act like she offers me drugs and makes me act like a whore! No wonder you never had nor have a girlfriend even though you are already 27 years old! You act as if you are my dad, which you are absolutely not! You got that!" She rushed to her room and slammed the door.

Touya was surprised by her outburst. He sat there on the kitchen table somewhat stunned, thinking, _Whoa…she was really mad at me. Sakura never lost her temper at me before…ever. She's usually mellow. I don't hate Meilin, its just girls like that are trouble. Although I have to admit, she was pretty and looked kinda sincere. Maybe I'll apologize to Sakura tomorrow. _

He continued to read his newspaper.

7:30 pm+

Meilin had been waiting for 30 minutes now and still no sign of Sakura. She knew Sakura had a tendency to be late but it was usually 10 to 15 minutes. She didn't want to go to the apartment because Touya would most likely answer the door. However, she had a feeling something was wrong, so she walked slowly to apartment 78 on the third floor just in case Sakura happened to be rushing down to meet her. She reaches to the apartment door by about 7:50.

Meanwhile in sad-part of Japan+

"Sir, we are still unable to locate Sakura Kinomoto." said an agent saluting.

"Argh! That wench is a nuisance. If she didn't owe me a million bucks, I wouldn't be having so much trouble or even wasting my time on her. Continue the search, and don't come back until you find her, you bumbling idiot!"

"Y-Yes, Sir!" with that the agent rushed off not wanting to be punished.

"Fujitake Kinomoto…if my minions don't find her…you will for me. MWAHAHAHHAHAH!" A servant outside heard this and wondered whether he was talking to himself or to another person, but then he ignored since it was none of his business to snoop around.

In happier-part of Japan +

Eriol and Tomoyo have been 'together' for 2 years now. Well, not really, he liked Tomoyo and she liked him but they never officially hit it off.

Today Eriol was planning to take Tomoyo on a "special" date; however, he didn't get the chance…because…Tomoyo was really worried about Sakura. She kept asking why she left, where she went, and why hadn't Sakura contacted her. She was in near depression, pacing back and forth in the hallways of her spacious mansion.

"Oh Eriol, what if she's…OH MY GOSH, what if she's dead?" Tomoyo was about ready to lose her sanity.

He embraced her as he tried to assure her that Sakura was alive and that she would call her soon.

"No way, if she was dead Touya would've called me. Maybe she's busy. I'm sure when she has the time, she'll contact you…c'mon …try to calm down. 'Don't be such a worry wart.'"

Tomoyo sniffled, "But…I can't help it! My best friend has disappeared and gone to only God knows where."

"Hey, she's my friend too…Can you please try to cheer up? What happened to the happy and optimistic girl I knew?"

She grinned sarcastically, "She's gone on a very long vacation with joyful gladness and positive brightness."

Eriol's eyebrow shot up, "Oh really. Then who are you?"

"I'm practical cynicism, right here with the 'gorgeous' man of my dreams," whispered Tomoyo seductively in his ear that made Eriol tingly all over and blush. Obviously, he cheered her up.

"Um, T-Tomoyo, can we go out now?" He said changing the subject.

She chuckled, "Yeah, Let's." They smiled at each other and went out the door.

Back at Sakura's Apartment door+

Meilin waited another five minutes at the door and still…no Sakura. She heaved a sigh and knocked at the door rather softly. She saw a figure through the window walking to the door. She held her breath. When the door opened, there was a moment of intensity.

Touya just stared at her and she stared back. Before he knew it, he was eyeing her from her reddish highlighted black hair to her high-black-leather boots (and everything in-between). Meilin thought that he was inspecting her like a police officer searching for drugs. When their eyes met again, she broke the silence and stared at the ground.

"S-So, is Sakura o-okay? We were gon-na go out tonight, uh, b-but I guess you already knew th-that." She didn't know why she was stuttering so much. _Maybe because you're afraid of being punched…_

"Uh…you wanna come in …a-and talk to her? Heh, I'm sure you do, but before that we need to talk. Am I right?" He was brushing his shaking hand through the hair at the back of his head. _Why am I so nervous?_

"Okay, I guess so." She walked in and Touya closed the door behind her. He motioned her to the couch that only seated two people. After they sat down…

"I'm sorry…No I am." They said in unison. Meilin opened her mouth, but Touya placed his hand over it. He, then, began to race off:

"Me first, Meil- Li. I'm the one who should be sorry. I had no reason to have judged you in the beginning. Just because you're pretty and wear nice clothes that fit your nice figure doesn't make you a slut. Sakura has never gotten into a very bad crowd, so I should've trusted her more. I was hoping that we could start over and get along." He took a breath, saw the expression on her face and blushed when he realized what he had just said.

_Aw great…_

_Just great, you just blabbed out your first impressions of her…oi…_

_another reason why I stay away from women, I always make a fool of myself._

Meilin blinked and then smiled, "Well, thanks for the compliments. Never heard a guy be forward about it before. Anyway, I accept your apology and yes we can start over."

"I'm Touya Kinomoto." He took out his hand.

"I'm Meilin Li." She said accepting his hand and shaking it, "So where is Sakura? Did something happen?"

"She is in her room I believe…she got mad at me. It's my fault, I didn't treat you with the respect every woman deserves and she blew up on me for it."

"Oh no, um, can you let go of my hand?" said Meilin putting her hand on her shaking forehead after Touya reluctantly let go, "Well I'll go talk to her and when she comes out, you better talk to her." She knocked on Sakura's door gently and went in. Touya didn't even have time to answer…but then again…he didn't really have to. He decided to go and wash the dishes from earlier in the evening.

In Sakura's Room+

Meilin heard mumbling, "Hey Sakura, are you alright?"

Sakura jerked her head up from her pillow. Meilin closed the door and sat down on Sakura's bed. Sakura sat up and leaned her head on Meilin's shoulder. Meilin then put her head on Sakura's head, "Sakura, I appreciate your backing me up, but that is no reason to yell at your brother."

Sakura looks up at her. "What do you mean? He was dissing you when he hardly even knew you! He thinks you are a bad influence when you have never done anything wrong. He is acting like my deceased father when he isn't. He doesn't have the right to control what I want to do with my life…nobody does except me."

"Oh I see…well…he is wrong but that doesn't make you right. He is looking out for you in a way that your father didn't. And…," Meilin sighs, "I have done things that were wrong to do…"

"Hoe? What was it?" Sakura's head straightened.

"I-I, well, ----"

"Never mind, its okay. I have no right to pry into your personal life." Sakura smiles.

"I'll tell, just not now…Thanks."

"So, should we go?"

"Not yet, you have to talk to your one and only brother and you have to get ready." said Meilin examining her. She was wearing her uniform from work.

Sakura blushes, "Oh…hehe, hoe? Talk to my onii-chan? Can't I do that…", she saw 'the look' from Meilin and decided to not finish her sentence and sweat-dropped. _Meilin can be scary sometimes_

TBC…

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So…what do you think? Do I have way too much dialogue? Probably, hehe, sorry. Don't be mad that I had mostly Touya and Meilin in this chapter. There will be less of them and more of Sakura and Syaoran & Eriol and Tomoyo; I Promise! I won't be able to update very often from now on. Well, you choose. Either I write somewhat short chapters and update more often or I write long chapters and update from time to time. If you think I can improve my writing…please let me know. Ya know, a little constructive criticism would work. Tell me when you review! 


	4. Unto Revolution

_Disclaimer: _I don't have money and I don't own CCS, so don't sue me!

Well, first off. I'd like to thank the people who reviewed so far...THANK YOU! You are great people, Love ya!  
**FlowerLover:** LOL, yes you probably have read a fanfic similar to this one because you read the Attractions fanfic that I had. I deleted that one and remodeled it into a somewhat new fanfic. Thanks for you continuing support!

**WhiteMage88:** I read one of your fics. I like it! Well, thanks for reviewing and actually reading the author notes I leave at the beginning and the end of the chapters!

**Attractions with Trouble -- Chapter 3**

At Revolution+

It was about 8:30 and still no sign of the auburn girl from the coffee shop. Syaoran was growing weary. Every time the door opened, he would check to see if it was her, but it wasn't.

_What the hell! Why should I care? That girl is just one of those ditzy females who do not know the difference between left and right…no wonder she works at a coffee shop. Nobody needs a brain to put hot coffee water into a Styrofoam cup._

_Aww…c'mon, you know she's cute._

_No she isn't._

_Admit it. You said it before._

_You shut up!_

_Well I'm you, so I can't shut up until you stop talking to yourself._

_………_

"Hey, DJ dude! Can I request a song!" Some person broke through Syaoran's thoughts. He was yelling over the booming music.

"Yeah, sure!"

Back at Sakura's Place+

Sakura saw Touya, who was drying his wet hands from the dishes, and walked over to him. He saw her coming and cocked his head to one side to make eye contact. They didn't even have to say anything, they understood what had happened and they silently apologized and forgave each other. Then Sakura went back into her room where her "tailor" was waiting.

After about 10 minutes, she was ready. She was wearing a pink tube top, a black leatherskirt 2 inches above her knees and a pair of white low-cut boots with some mascara, eyeliner, blue eye shadow and lip gloss. Her hair was in a high ponytail with a little of her bangs on the sides. She and Meilin came out of the room to find Touya sitting in a recliner waiting for them.

"Waoh! How did you get into my apartment, woman? I know I'm gorgeous, but can you act civilized and come through the door instead?" said Touya grinning playfully looking at Meilin.

_She is Fo0oine tonight._

_Actually, she always is_

_Since we made up, I think I'll have a little fun._

"Eww…Onii-chan! I'm your sister!" Sakura was totally grossed out.

"I wasn't talking to you, monster." He said stepping closer to Meilin who was blushing a bit but tried to keep her 'cool'.

Before Meilin could move away, he gently grabbed her wrists and pulled her close. He leaned his head next to hers. He could smell her perfume and her silky hair. All the while, Sakura was watching in bewilderment and Meilin was in a daze, becoming even redder feeling Touya's breath on the side of her face.

He whispered into her left ear, "I think I forgot to mention how hott you look tonight…actually how you looked since the beginning."

Then he kissed her left cheek. "Can we go now?" said Sakura crossing her arms, growing impatient. Touya reluctantly let Meilin go. She touched her cheek and stared at the door.

_Wow…that was intense_

_…haven't felt that way in a while_

_Heh, what a charmer_

Meilin then nodded to Sakura then to Touya and approached the door to leave. Sakura followed her. She waved her brother good-bye and closed the entrance to the apartment. Touya was in thought of his special someone and pondered why he did what he did. It was about 8:30 p.m.

At Revolution +

They finally got to the club around 9:00 p.m. They had heard the booming music from a few blocks away. As they entered, every head turned especially the guys. Sakura took no notice; her eyes were on the guy with the head phones. Meilin greeted some of her colleagues as she followed Sakura.

The club building was humongous. It was dark and the only source of light was the dancing different colored lamps on the ceiling with the disco ball. The walls were black but plastered with something that looked like confetti and glitter, so the lights reflected off them. It created a kind of luminous effect. There were shiny streamers and ribbons coiled (about five feet long) from the ceiling towards the floor adding to the effect.

Meilin followed Sakura's gaze, "Hah! I told you he was the DJ."

"I never disagreed." Sakura was still gazing at him.

Syaoran felt someone watching him. He looked at the entrance and saw a fine-ass chick checking him out. He squinted and recognized her as the girl from the coffee house. He smiled for a second, but then became "indifferent" and looked at the machine before him.

Meilin called Sakura over to the bar. Good thing Meilin knew the bartender and got a discount for the drinks she and Sakura ordered.

"What's up, Yukito?" Meilin grinned at the gray-haired guy wearing glasses, "Two Cokes, please."

"Yeah, sure Mei."

"By the way, this is Sakura Kinomoto. Sakura, this is Yukito Tsukishiro." She said gesturing back and forth.

"Nice to meet you." Yukito smiled.

"You too."

"Um…our drinks?" asked Meilin inquisitively.

"Here you go! Two Cokes with ices!"

Then someone was heading towards them, "Yo! Yukito, my man!" It was none other than Syaoran. Sakura didn't glance at him because she was too busy blushing. Thanks goodness that it was dark.

Meilin decided to step in, "Hi, Syaoran Li. I'm Meilin Li, you know, your distant cousin."

"Hey." He said accepting her hand and shaking it. "And you are?"

"Uh…Kinomoto Sakura." She smiled nervously. Syaoran was eyeing her. Meilin whispered to Yukito what was going on and they split. She made her way to the dance floor and boogying with some guys while Yukito went to serving the other drunks. Syaoran and Sakura were alone. Sakura jumped off her stool, but didn't get to go another step as he grabbed her hand.

"Wanna dance? I have about an hour break. Some other guy is filling in." He asked with great hope that she would accept.

She didn't hesitate, "Sure, why not?" Then she smiled. Syaoran blushed also thanking God for the darkness.

TBC…

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Blah…so0o cliché and redundant, sorry…the better stuff comes later in the juicy part of the fic…REVIEW and I'll see yall later! 


	5. Sakura's Inquiries

_Disclaimer:_ I don't own CCS…

**FlowerLover: **Didn't I already say that Meilin and Syaoran are distant cousins? You should look in Chapter 1. Oh yeah, and I revised Chapter 3…Thanks for review!

**WhiteMage88: **I really liked the fic I read from you. O wait… I already said that. Anyways, Sakura will meet the mob gang sooner than you think! I can't give away anymore info…Thanks!

**Attractions with Trouble -- Chapter 4**

Sakura's POV

As we got onto the dance floor, which was anywhere with floor-room but the bar, I could see Meilin dancing with about five guys at once. I sweated dropped & thought of how Touya would have reacted. I giggled to myself.

Meilin turned and saw me. She gave me one of her sly smiles and pulled me in, "Here, I'll make it easier for you." I grew utterly confused, which faded away when I saw that Meilin managed to get Syaoran and another man to dance with us…as a group.

Gradually, Syaoran started to draw me away from the other two. "You really do look amazing tonight."

I grinned, "Thanks."

For a few minutes we danced without saying anything else, but I became conscious of Syaoran's eyes never leavingmy face. I found myself purposely avoiding his eyes. As the song ended, the music changed tempo and slowed down. I glanced around.

"Well, I guess we should find Meilin and that guy," I said quickly. Before I could move, Syaoran grabbed my hands, "Don't go, Sakura, I love this song." His tone of voice was becoming serious.

I gulped…this is not what I wanted at all, "But it's a slow song."

He smiled, "I know."

Before I knew it, I was in Syaoran's arms with his chest touching mine. I noticed my closeness to him and pushed away a little bit. I was new to the whole "guy and girl" thing. I grew uncomfortable and wanted to join Meilin, however, I couldn't leave Syaoran out of the blue. So I continued dancing with him( at a distance), slowly moving towards Meilin. Unfortunately, I think he noticed.

And he said worriedly, "Um…are you all right, Ms. Kino--?"

"I'm alright." I said putting on a fake smile.

_C'mon Sakura…what's wrong? You're not scared are you? _

_NO, of course not._

_You sure? You surely seem it. You afraid of rape? _

_WHO ARE YOU!_

_Your conscience…nah…I'm you._

_Leave me alone…_

I was going crazy. I wasn't afraid of rape. Or was I? I continued my way to Meilin until I bumped into her. The slow song ended and a techno song came on, thank goodness.

"Hey, Sakura! What's shaking? Other than your ass. HAHAHA!" Meilin looked high. Maybe her Coke was spiked...

"Can we go and chat a bit?" I suddenly became exhausted.

"Sure! Later guys!" She tried moving away from them but their being too drunk made them move along with her. "Fine! If you guys let me by, I'll give you something _really _special." She turned & french kissedthe guy closest to her. Right when she deepened the kiss, she pulled away. They all nodded stupidly, except for they guy who was kissed because he was too aroused & busy gawking at her to listen.

I was amazed. I never saw this side of her, but then again, I only knew her for about 9 months. It was strange, she knew her way around places & yet she acted as if she didn't know any better than I did. She came from another country as I was and came to America only half a year before I had. Was there much more to her than meets the eye? I remember her saying something to me when we were at my house…

Beginning of Flashback

"Sakura, I appreciate your backing me up, but that is no reason to yell at your brother."

Sakura looks up at her, "What do you mean? He was dissing you when he hardly even knew you! He thinks you are a bad influence when you have never done anything really wrong. He is acting like my deceased father when he isn't. He doesn't have the right to control what I want to do with my life…nobody does."

"Oh I see…well…he is wrong but that doesn't make you right. He is looking out for you in a way that your father didn't . And…," Meilin sighs, " I have done something that was wrong to do…"

"Hoe? What was it?" They release each other of the embrace.

"I-I, well, ----"

"Never mind, its okay. You can tell me when your ready. I have no right to pry into your personal life." Sakura smiles.

"I'll tell, just not now…Thanks."

End of Flashback

Oh well, she will tell me when it is the right time. I can't start thinking about her "unknown" side now. She is my friend and the best one in NY too. She is helping me cope and it is working. I should just enjoy the evening.

"Hey, Sakura…hello?"Meilin was waving and snapping her fingers in my face.

"Yeah?"

"Is something wrong? I had to practically drag you to a 'quiet' spot to talk as you asked."

"I'm sorry to ruin your evening, but I don't feel very comfortable right now. Can you walk me home? You can sleep over if you like." I offered this because I wanted to talk to her. I checked my watch that showed 9:45. I think I looked sick. I felt somewhat hot yet my hands and feet were freezing cold.

"Oh, sorry Sakura but I'm…uh…busy later." She looked a little crossed and hesitant to answer me. I wonder why?

"Oh? Why?"

"Yes, you see…um…tonight I have to baby-sit for my aunt. She's a nurse and works night shifts, so I take care of her 5 year old daughter who is having a cold right now. She wakes up a lot at night, so…yeah…hehe." She was brushing her hand through her hair rather nervously.

This couldn't be happening. Meilin being too busy to be there for me? Well, I'm not going to let a little girl get in the way. "Then, I can help you."

"N-NO!" She put her hands in front of me as if to stop me from walking forward which I wasn't doing at all since we were still inside the club, "I-I mean it's okay. I can handle it. I've taken care of her since she was born, s-so it's all right. I'll talk to you on the phone if you like and I will still walk you home, so we could start talking then too."

_Is she hiding something from me? _

_She's my friend…I should give her, her privacy. _

_This is very suspicious…_

_Oh c'mon Sakura, you are reading too much into things._

"Oh all right. We'll do that then." With that, we began to walk to the door when Syaoran showed up. He stood right in front of us saying, "Hey, _hic_ where do **_you_** think _hiccup_ you're going?" He sounded weird. Oh my gosh, he must have drank something or rather some things while we were chatting in the corner.

He looked very uncoordinated and stood as if he had only one foot to stand on. I didn't think the guy I had a crush on was a drunk…ewww…his breath smelled too. I think it was vodka. That stuff is strong! I can't even take a shot of that, besides the fact that I was 10 when I tried it.

I glanced at Meilin who was as surprised as I was. Luckily, for us, Yukito came to see what the trouble was. "Yoh, Syaoran. Why don't you come over to those honeys in the booth at the far corner?…Yeah, over there. Look, they're waving at you." He pointed to some hung-over girls in the other side of the commodious room.

He directed Syaoran away, not before winking at Meilin signaling that we could leave in peace and not in pieces. Syaoran reminded me of a pinhead. The look on his face looked very dumb-founded. I could just picture that face and stick on one of those bowling pins…HAHAHAHAHAHA! How funny is that?

TBC…

* * *

I revised this chapter almost 5 times before I updated. If you have suggestions, comments, compliments, and constructive criticism for me, then REVIEW! Last but not least REVIEW! I know it sounds cheesy because practically every fanfic writer says it, but its kinda important…for me anyway…because this helps me decide whether to continue this fanfic or not. 


	6. Dejected Entertainment

_Disclaimer: _I don't own CCS so don't sue me!

Oh yeah, this is an interview I had with Sakura, Touya, and Syaoran.

**Star-Sapphirex **So, Sakura, how do you like my fanfic?  
**Sakura: **I think you make me sound like a wimp. Other than that I like it.  
**Touya: **Hey, Star. Who is Meilin?  
**Star-Sapphirex **HEY MISTER! AM I TALKING TO YOU? NO! SO SHUT UP! _looks back at Sakura, smiling_ Anyways, You sound like a wimp now, but you wont be later in the fanfic _**(foreshadowing)**  
_**Sakura: **_sweat drops _Wow, you have fast mood swings.  
**Syaoran: **Yeah, but not like you, Sakura. No wonder you are related to Touya.  
**Sakura: **_glares_ Well, at least I don't get drunk and act like a pinhead!  
**Touya: **And that's Mr. Kinomoto to YOU, BUSTER! _getting ready to choke Syaoran  
_**Syaoran: **Hey! My name is Syaoran Li! SYAORAN LI! _ready in fighting stance  
_**Star-Sapphirex **O-Ook people. Calm down. Argue in front of a psychologist or a psychiatrist but not me. Now, breathe in the goodness, and breathe out the rage. Inhale, Exhale. _gestures motion of arms up and down  
_**Touya: **Umm…are we in a yoga class?  
**Star-Sapphirex **WAS I SPEAKING TO YOU? SHUT YOUR TRAP, YOU WOMENIZER!

_ALL stop, strange silence…_

**Star-Sapphirex **_puts hand over mouth_ Oops…  
**Touya: **_gapes _You promised you wouldn't tell…  
**Sakura: **Hah! I told you, Shaoran. You owe me 20 bucks. _puts out hand  
_**Syaoran: **Damn… _pulls out wallet, taking out a twenty-dollar-bill_

As you could see, it did not go so well. At least I got one question in.  
Now back to our story…

**Attractions with Trouble --Chapter 5**

+ The Streets of Tomoeda + **_(Still in Sakura's POV)_**

As we turned the corner, I decided to break the silence with a stupid question, "So, can I talk to you now?"

Meilin turned her head to face me and smiled, "Sure," suddenly she frowned, "Let me ask you this: Why were you so uptight? This was supposed to be a time and place for you to unwind and settle down, relax and chill out…ya know, chillax. Isn't that why you moved to America?"

I sighed, "How did you know that 'that' reason is the reason why I moved?"

" Um…It's just a lucky guess? I know that there is more to your situation since you've hinted things from time to time in our conversations. But how does Syaoran fit into this?"

"I don't want anyone to be involved in…well…you know, and I've never gotten intimate with a guy before. Well, I was uptight because I am kinda new at this, the whole 'going out' thing. Back at home, in Japan, my brother scared all the tough guys away, and the other guys were too shy to ask me out. Plus, after all, it is not as if I like him. In order for one to like someone, one must first know the person. I hardly know this guy."

"Oh, I get it now…Well, I think we should save Mr. DJ for later, neh?" She made a funny face.

I laughed, "Yep!" She always seemed to know when to do something. She always lightens the mood. She reminded me a lot of Tomoyo. Man, do I miss her. Well, someday we will all meet and be the trio divas! HAHAHA!

+ Happy Japan + **_(Normal POV)_**

While on their special date, Tomoyo couldn't help but think and worry about Sakura. It has been years since she last saw her or even heard from her.

_Why won't she call me? _

_Is she in deep trouble? _

_Oh…I just don't know…_

She rested her chin on her palm, frowning in frustration. She turned her head to face the window.

Eriol sat across the table not knowing what else to do. Yes, it was strange for Sakura and Touya to leave Japan without letting anyone know, or maybe they are still in Japan but in hiding.

He looked around the beautiful restaurant, seeing other couples eating, laughing, smiling, and cuddling with each other while he and Tomoyo sit together doing separate things. Was his relationship falling apart because of Sakura? This thought made him cringe in disgust, and he slapped himself for even thinking it.

Eriol sighed, "Tomoyo? Honey, do you want to go home?"

Tomoyo blinked, losing her train of thought, "Um…yeah. I'm so sorry Eriol…I didn't even eat my food yet…"

"No it's all right. We can do this another time anyway." He smiled. With that, Tomoyo stood up and put on her sweater that was hanging on her chair, not noticing the suspicious look on Eriol's face.

_Well, the only way for Tomoyo to stop worrying about the problem…is to fix it. _

_Don't you worry Tomoyo._

_I'll get to the bottom of this_

+ Sad Japan +

_BRIING! BRIING!_

"Hello!" said a husky voice.

A somewhat innocent voice responded, "Boss…"

"Well, about time you called. Did you find her yet?"

"Heh, duh! If I hadn't, do you think I would've phoned you? She is an easy target. Why couldn't you find her yourself? Did the dense girl slip through your fingers? Oh…wait…I mean your paws, you fat slug! HAHAHA!" The voice laughed malevolently. _She_ did not sound so innocent.

"Look, bitch— " The pissed off voice began.

"Okay! Okay, I'm sorry…Father." She said, making it obvious that she rolled her eyes at her 'boss', acting so childishly.

"Now, here's the plan. You keep her busy and exactly 6 months from now, ''Snake'' will take her to 'the summit'. She is going to have a surprise there and…oh, make sure her brother goes with her."

"Not a problem…you know how I can be _in two places at once_…and you planned all this out just to get your money?"

"No…for revenge. Killing two sitting ducks with one bullet. If you must know, exactly 6 months from now is the anniversary of their so-called father's death."

"Why do I have to be stuck with the Kinomotos for another six months?" The voice now sounding a little more benevolent and annoyed.

"Aww…now, dear, are you getting too attached to Mr. and Ms. Kinomoto?" Asked her boss, teasing her.

"Oh Puh-lease! As if! We have only known each other for nine months. Besides, although she is seventeen, she is as smart and as gullible as a dead goldfish. Her brother is just as gullible. I think they might have inherited that 'special' quality from their ancestors." She laughed with the last remark referring to Sakura's father.

The boss was pleased. His daughter was his best agent/mercenary. Why did he ever trust his other inferior agents to try to get the job done? Thing were going exactly as he planned…

**TBC…**

OoOoOoOo…so the plot thickens…REVIEW please!


	7. Touya's Stance

_Disclaimer:_ Yes, you know the drill…I don't own CCS, meaning that you can't sue me.

I would like to say thanks to the people who reviewed and to those people who have read and NOT reviewed. By the way, I changed the title a bit. It is too much work to change it for all the before chapters, so just keep a note about the new one from here on. Enjoy!

( ) -- my notes

**Troubling Attractions --Chapter 6**

+ In New York at 10:00 a.m. +

Touya slowly opened Sakura's bedroom door. She slept in, regardless of her early arrival home last night. He did not even see Meilin at the door when Sakura came in. She must have dropped her off at the apartment building instead of their apartment door. He closed Sakura's door and decided to give Meilin a call. He went into the kitchen, opened a drawer, and found Sakura's phonebook.

He scanned through the pink letters and found what he was looking for. _I hope this isn't the wrong thing to do, _he thought as he picked up the receiver and dialed her number.

_Ring! Ring! Ring!_

"Hewoh!" (Hello!) young nasal voice said.

Did he dial the wrong number? "I-Is this the Li residence?"

"Awh-huh!" (Uh-huh!) This little voice sounded even more excited, "Whoo i-es this?" (Who is this?)

"Uh…a friend of Meilin." Touya was baffled…maybe this was Meilin's little sister? Or niece?

A gasp came from the other line, "Weally? Wow! Are you mewy momwie's boyfwend?" (Really? Wow! Are you my mommy's boyfriend?)

_Mommy? Meilin? Boyfriend?_ Before he could answer, Touya heard some fracas in the background and a new older voice went on the line, "H-Hello?"

"Um, Can I speak with Meilin?"

"I do not know, Sir. CAN you?"

Touya became confused at the voice asking such a stupid question, but then he remembered what his English teacher used to say about the difference between the words "can" and "may". He finally asked again…in correct English, "MAY I speak with Meilin?"

"Yes, may I ask whose calling?"

"This is Touya." There is a long pause…

"I am apologetic, Sir. Who is this again?"

"Touya Kino--."

"Ah—my apologies—who is it? I can't hear you, Sir."

He finally yelled, becoming irritated with the daft-deaf woman on the other line, "MY NAME IS TOUYA KINOMOTO!"

Touya got the sense that she was frowning at him through the receiver. She lastly answered, "Oh all right! For goodness sake, there is no need to shout. I shall summon her right away. Please hold…"

"NO NEED TO SHOUT!", mumbled Touya officially pissed off with a blood vessel going to his brain impulsing more than usual.

His 'significant other' finally came on the line. The pleasant-sounding voice said, "Hello?"

Touya sighed in relief, "Hey, Meilin. How—"

"Who is this?" asked the confused woman.

Touya was about to have a rational meltdown until he heard a mutter on the other line explaining who he was, and he heaved another relieved sigh.

"OoOh! Hi Touya! What is going on and how did you get this number?"

"Well, your number was in Sakura's phonebook and I wanted to ask you what happened at your little outing. Sakura is acting a little bit strange."

"Well, it was a typical girls' night out. I'm not obligated to tell you what happened if Sakura has not told you yet."

"I'm her brother. I am 'obligated' to find out…one way or another."

Then a noise came up and Touya heard Meilin say, "Look, I have another call coming in and I'm kinda busy so…later!"

"But—" He heard the dead dial tone. He put down the receiver and blinked at it in confusion.

+Meilin's House+

Meilin felt horrible for lying to Touya, but she wasn't totally lying, right?

Her thoughts were disrupted, "Momwie, whoo—"

Meilin could not understand her with her speech jumbled up from her cold, so she pulled out a Kleenex and interrupted, "Honey, here, blow your nose." She held a tissue on her daughter's nose. She blew out most of the mucus and then asked again, for assurance, "Who was that?"

Meilin smiled, "That was mommy's, um, friend's…brother."

"Can he be my daddy?" asked the little girl excitedly.

Meilin chuckled, "I don't think so. Now, can you be a good girl at home with great Auntie while I am at work, okay?"

The little girl was a little disappointed, but reluctantly nodded her head in agreement. Meilin pats her on the head and rushes through the door.

TBC…

* * *

This is not one of my best chapters…I would rate the chapter as maybe a four…out of ten? Maybe a little lower, maybe a little higher? If you have any suggestions, you can email me or you can review. I have a main idea of how this story will turn out, but the details are still somewhat vague. I'll update again as soon as I get this writer's block out of my head with a dynamite of ideas, Mm-kay? Okay… :-D And thanks to the people who reviewed. THANK YOU:) 


	8. Sibling Affections

_Disclaimer: _I do not own CCS, so don't sue me!

**Troubling Attractions – Chapter 7**

+ Back at Sakura's House+

Sakura jumped out of her bed and charged to the bathroom to get ready. She had so many things on her mind last night that she could not sleep until it was rather late.

About fifteen minutes later, she dashed to the refrigerator to find something quick to eat. She grabbed an apple and was about to run out the front door when she heard her brother roar with laughter. She spun around to find him on the couch and asked, "What is so funny?"

He continued laughing for a couple more seconds and replied, "You should have seen yourself running through the house like a madwoman."

"Well, I'm running late, so what is your point?" She said as she bit into her apple.

He stood up and crossed his arms smart-like, nodding his head to the kitchen clock, "You did not notice that _your_ clock is an hour early?"

Her eyes widened. She nearly choked and slowly turned her head to the timepiece on the wall pointing to 12:15. Her shift did not start until 2:00.

"HOOOEEE? Why did you change my alarm clock, you jerk?" Sakura asked, glaring at him.

He held up his hands as if surrendering a battle, "It is all for a good reason. We need to talk and maybe, afterwards, I will drive you to work."

Sakura jerked her head and eyed him suspiciously smiling, "Oh, I get it…You want to see Meilin." She then giggles.

Touya blushed in embarrassment and cleared his throat, "No, that is beside the point. I thought I would try to be nice! Anyway, what happened last night?"

She suddenly became serious, looking at the ground as if it was important. She just stood by the front door, drowning in her thoughts. Touya saw and felt the sudden change of atmosphere. He knew something had happened, and he had to find out. He made a promise to their mother all those years ago, and he planned to keep it. He decided that maybe they should go for some ice cream or something and talk about it, so he broke the silence, saying, "Let's go out and chat about it, alright?"

Sakura put on a reluctant grin, "Um, sure." She did not want to talk about it; however, it might help her. They got into Touya's 2000-Z8 BMW; the silver little car was greatly expensive. Nonetheless, he worked for Microsoft, testing the newly developed machines, so it was not anything he could not afford.

They stopped at Dairy Queen, ordered, received their ice cream and sat at a table outside in the afternoon sun. They did not converse right away; instead, they observed the busy streets and people rushing by. Cars were buzzing through the streets like worker bees going in and out of their hive. People were power walking or running, some with cell phones in their hands or ears, from the right and left.

Touya broke the utter stillness as he dug into his ice cream, "Was it fun?"

"Pardon?" Sakura seemed to be in a daze.

"Was your outing with Meilin fun?" He said trying to be patient.

"It was at first, but then it got weird," started Sakura who eased into her normal self, "When we got into the club, this guy got drunk and fainted on the dance floor. It was funny when I found Meilin dancing with five men at once. They formed like a circle around her. The bartender was a nice person. He is one of Meilin's good friends. The DJ was another story…"

She just went on and on and on like the Energizer bunny, but Touya was not annoyed with her verbalizing. Ever since they left Japan, she would keep quiet to herself most of the time. However, now, most of her talking consisted of Meilin this or Meilin that. Touya was a bit jealous that Meilin had the opportunity to hang out with his baby sister so much while he was busy working. It made him happy that his little sister was not gloomy anymore.

"…and, oh yeah, I could have sworn that Yukito winked at Meilin as if he was flirting with her. I bugged her about it when she walked me home. I told her about Japan, Tomoyo, Eriol, and …" Sakura abruptly stopped. She remembered Japan and how much she missed her life there.

"Touya, do you think I can call Tomoyo sometime?" She ate a spoonful of her sundae.

"You can call her…if you want to give yourself away to the Japanese Mafia."

Sakura stuck her tongue out at him while checking her wristwatch, which showed 1:00. She signaled for Touya to bring his car around.

On their way to Starbucks, Touya became excited, and Sakura knew it. He unconsciously smiled through the whole drive. Sakura wondered if her older brother and her friend would hit it off. Then her thoughts moved to Syaoran. The memories of the night before came surging back to her. She wondered if she would see him at work today or if he would even come around at all.

Touya's POV 

We finally reached Starbucks after an hour in traffic. (You have to love New York) I walked with Sakura into the little coffee shop. Meilin was at the counter, speaking with a gray-haired man. He was not old though, about my age. Meilin caught sight of us and waved. The guy turned around and jerked his head upward in assurance of Sakura's presence and circled back to Meilin. I flared up a bit, both envying and wishing I had that guy's courage to talk with her as if it was a casual thing to do.

As we got closer, Sakura went through the side door with an apron in her hand. Before I knew it, she was beside Meilin on the other side of the counter. The guy holds out his hand to me and said, "Hi, I'm Yukito Tsukishiro. You must be Sakura's brother, Touya. Nice to meet you." He smiled and it sickened me. Regardless, I accepted his hand and replied, "You too."

Meilin must have realized the tension because she randomly said, "Yukito, don't you have to clean up at the club?"

Yukito ran his hand through his fair gray hair, "Oh yeah, well great meeting you Touya. See you Sakura and I'll call you later Mei." He leaned in to Meilin and kissed both sides of her face and she did likewise. That was one of the most eerie things I had ever seen. I clenched my fist, resisting the urge to punch the guy. After he left, Meilin turned her attention to Sakura, and they chatted away like no tomorrow. They talked so fast, it was like hearing a fast-forwarded tape. I cleared my throat to gain their notice and said, "Ladies, may I order?"

Meilin flipped her hair, gave me one of her cute smiles and responded, "Sure, Mister Kinomoto. How may I help you?"

At that, I thought, _Wow, am I in heaven?_

_Sorry dude, but…your not._

_What the hell?_

_…I think I'll shut up now._

I asked for some black coffee. She told me to find a seat also adding that she will bring it to me when it was ready. Cool, I was getting the special treatment.

A few minutes after I took my seat, I saw a familiar person walk into the shop. He glanced at the counter where Sakura was. I instinctually went into my protective mode and hurried over to the tabletop. I cut in front of him and called to Meilin, "Hey, is the coffee ready or are you still having trouble heating the hot water?"

She spun around and scowled at me, "Well, how about you come over here and 'help' me out?" She smirked and I winked in response. I motioned for my sister to move out of the way and hopped over the counter 'accidentally' with too much force and bumped into Meilin, then wrapping my arms around her for 'support'. We laughed and started our own conversation while I kept my eyes on Sakura and that guy.

**TBC…**

* * *

All right, that is it for now. I am having a semi-writer's block, so if you have any small ideas of special occasions I may be able to use then please let me know. If there is any confusion in the fanfic, notify me at once and please specify the confusion. Just telling me that you are confused doesn't help you or me. Review, por favor (please)! 


	9. Plain Entertainment

_Disclaimer:_ I don't own CCS so you can't sue me!

**Thanks to the people who care enough to review! _personal thanks at the end of the chapter._**

_**( ) - my comments  
**italics - thoughts_

**Troubling Attractions – Chapter 8**

Touya's POV 

Still watching the strange amber-eyed boy from the corner of my eye, I asked Meilin about the annoyingly peculiar incident that morning when I called her. "Who were the people on the phone earlier?"

Meilin arched an eyebrow, "What? Are you talking about?"

I smirked at her confusion, "Did I already mention that you look absolutely adorable when you are in bewilderment?"

She gave me the lazy-eyes look (-.-), "Stop flirting and answer my question, Mr. Kinomoto."

"I was asking you about the voices that were on the phone when I tried to call you this morning."

"Well," stated Meilin hesitantly, "What about them?"

"Who picked up the phone?"

"My, um, niece. If you couldn't understand what she was saying, that is because she had a stuffy nose from her cold."

"Oh, I thought it was some retarded kid with a strange speech impediment."

Meilin flared up, "What? How can you say something so cruel about my dau—I mean, my niece! I dare you to say that again! Say it again and see what happens!"

I chuckled regretfully, "I'm sorry, Meilin. It was supposed to be a joke."

Meilin turned away from me concentrating on the coffee maker. "Get out," started Meilin as she placed a plastic cap on the coffee cup and handed it to me, "Go back to your seat."

I felt horrible. Normally, I would be mad at a woman for her over reactive nature, but with Meilin, I sensed that I had deeply offended her niece, therefore, insulted her. I walked to the side door and then out to my regular seat, slowly sipping the bitter brown water (coffee).

Normal POV 

Syaoran was a bit taken back by Touya's action but recovered quickly and said, "Hey, Ms. Kinomoto, when is your break?"

Sakura glanced at her watch and unwillingly replied, "It starts…in two minutes. If you want to talk about last night, there is nothing to talk about."

_Too bad today is a slow day…_

_People don't come into Starbucks in the afternoon. _

_They go to McDonalds or Burger King…_

_Why didn't I take a part time job there in the afternoon instead of working full time here on the weekends!_

Syaoran looked disappointed and answered, "Okay, I get the message; just wanted to say that I am very sorry." With that, he rushed out the door. Touya frowned in confusion and Meilin gaped in surprise. Sakura moved her gaze to the cash register and heaved a sigh. The other customers looked around the room, wondering what had just happened.

+ Around 4:45 p.m. +

Sakura massaged her painful cheeks while listening to Meilin complain, "Oww…both sides of my face hurt. At this rate I'll get wrinkles by the time I'm 30 instead of 50 like normal women."

Sakura chuckled lightly at her friend acting so childishly. They had been smiling and speaking at the same time for a couple hours straight. Their boss caught sight of Syaoran leaving and assumed that they purposely scared off a customer and said for them to be nice and patient to the customers, and to smile a lot to make them feel welcomed.

The boss watched them the whole three hours, grinning to herself with the satisfaction of a punishment well given. Touya just sat in the corner, still sipping his black coffee with grief. After the first hour or so,Sakura and Meilin'ssmiles were as real as the smile on a Barbie doll.

_And I thought it was a slow day. _

_Who knew people would come in one after the other for three hours straight_, thought Sakura still rubbing down her cheeks like a missus**_ (did I spell that right?)_**.

When it finally reached 5:00, the otheremployees showed up and Meilin and Sakura were free at last. Touya followed them out, throwing away his empty cup. To their surprise, Syaoran was tilting against the building, seemingly waiting for them.

"What are you doing here?" asked Sakura.

"You said you did not want to talk, but you did not say I could not wait for you." He held his head high, a little proud of himself. This confidence faded away when he met Touya's glare.

Then it was Meilin to the rescue, "Oh, hi Syaoran. Do you want to join us in our trip to freedom from the evil coffee shops?" An idea dinged in her head, "I KNOW! A double date!" Touya and Sakura stared at her with the look of 'What did you do that for'.

"Okay, sure. As long as I'm paired with Sakura." Syaoran promiscuously eyed Sakura.

"Wait— I'm not—" Sakura could not finish when she saw Meilin's puppy eyes-look, "Oh, Meilin don't do that!"

Regardless of the demand, Meilin continued, "C'mon."

Sakura thought, _Damn, that gets me every time…_

_almost like…Tomoyo…_

"Okay, fine," said Sakura reluctantly.

Meilin hooked an arm with Touya, "So, where do you people want to go?"

+On the Street+

They had walked about three blocks in pairs, Syaoran with Sakura and Touya with Meilin. Touya was constantly looking confusingly at Meilin when she exasperatingly asked, "Why are you staring at me like that?"

"Well, I thought that you were upset at me."

She smirked, "I was but I am not now. I realized that you are probably tired of the over reaction of women and since I was doing that exact thing, I decided to let it go THIS TIME and forgive you."

"I see…"

**TBC…**

* * *

Review please and I'll update soon! 

Personal thanks to:  
**MiniSparky - Thanks for the review! You are awesome!**

**(:D) - The dad had to die because that helps the story reach the climax. You will know that reason later in the story. I do not say that many "bad words". "Ass" is only one word; I used it to add emphasis to the story and to show a different part of Sakura's personality. Rarely ever will you see "bad words" from me. Thanks for your review anyway.**

**FlowerLover - LOL it was short, so that you can read in detail at the "clues" I give during the story. I have udpated, so be happy! THANKS!**

**Lan - You are so weird sometimes Lanny -.-''. Why did you have to yell out the freaking answer! Thanks for the review!**


	10. Learning New Things

_Disclaimer:_ I don't own CCS…blah, blah, bleh…

( ) – my thoughts and comments

**Troubling Attractions -- Chapter 9**

_**+Tomoeda in Happy Japan+**(morning)_

The scorching sunlight barged into Tomoyo's bedroom as she groaned, turning away from 'the light' in her lavender bed. She sighed as she opened her eyes to another day…another day _without_ Sakura and her brother. Sakura was like a dear sister. Although Tomoyo was never very close to Touya, with just his presence, she felt as if she had an older brother too.

Tomoyo was in such deep dismay that she did not notice that her eyes were watering. She hardly ever cried, not since Mr. Kinomoto passed away. She sniffed and glimpsed at her clock, which pointed to 10:00 a.m. Just as Tomoyo sat up, her telephone rang. She grunted and slammed back unto her bed. After another three rings, she fumbled off the bed and ran to the living room.

When she reached the room, her voice message already came on.

_Hello! You have reached Tomoyo Daidouji's home. She is currently unavailable, so please leave your name, your contact number and a brief—_

Tomoyo picked up the receiver, "Moshi Moshi!"

No answer and Tomoyo said again, "Hello?"

"_Hello, Ms. Daidouji."_

The unfamiliar male voice puzzled Tomoyo. "Who is calling?"

"_My name isn't important at the moment. I just phoned to inform you that your friend and her brother **are** alive."_

"What? Are they really?"

"_Yes, Miss Daidouji."_

"Where are they?" asked an anxious Tomoyo.

"_I do not know myself."_

"How can I confirm this?"

A long pause came…_"You will just have to hope in your heart and… trust me."_

Before Tomoyo could say or ask anything further, the person hung up. Tomoyo continued to stare at the receiver strangely while she pondered about the words he said.

**+_In Olive_ _Garden in NY_+ **_(nighttime)_

After Sakura, Syaoran, Touya and Meilin entered the restaurant, Yukito was there to greet them. "Welcome to— OH! Hello people that I know."

Touya just ignored his statement and replied, "Table for four…please."

Yukito just smiled and grabbed four menus, "All right then, this way." He gestured to a booth in the far corner. After they settled in and ordered, Meilin wanted to go outside, saying she wished to get some fresh air. She asked Touya if he needed some too. He declined, however, Meilin just dragged him out with her, and Sakura and Syaoran found themselves stuck with each other. Syaoran thought this was delightful while Sakura thought that it was repugnant.

They sat for a few minutes scanning the restaurant. Sakura was looking at everything and everyone but Syaoran, afraid that if she even glimpsed at him, she would lose her sanity.

_Hmm… maybe I can make him lose his…_

With that notion, she flipped her hair, smiled at him for a split second, cutely rested her chin on her hand and crossed her legs, pretending to be occupied with dust floating in the air. She saw him twitch a bit. She laughed inwardly and decided to take a step farther and speak with him.

"So, how is it going?" She grinned 'sincerely' still resting her chin on her hand.

"Uh-uh…all right I guess." He hesitated.

"You guess? Why?"

"Well, life could be better." He rested on the backrest with sadness and frustration increasing within him.

"What? The life of a college student/ DJ who works at one of the hottest clubs with girls chasing him day and night not good enough for him?"

Syaoran did not answer, still staring into the distance.Sakura continued, "I'd imagine that _that_ would be every man's dream."

"It's not as great as you think." Syaoran frowned.

Sakura suddenly became interested in the direction the conversation was going, "Now, why don't you tell me about it."

"College can be very stressful especially when one can't exactly dedicate oneself to one's future and education." He paused and glanced at Sakura who nodded, assuring him that she understood.

"Having a full time job and going to school isn't easy, especially if you don't have much time to study. Having girls chase after you because you are a 'hot' DJ, or whatever they call me, is not an adequate reason for me to enjoy it." He sighed, "It doesn't lessen the amount of stress…" He did not need to finish his sentence because he had made his point.

"Wow, I guess it is not as amusing as I thought it would be." She began to zone out on the subject, remembering what she thought college life would be like when she was younger. She thought of dorms filled with parties and fun. Being independent and being able to do what ever you want with no parents and adults telling you what you can and cannot do. No stress…no work. Now that she had heard of the "terrors" of the rode to adulthood, she was afraid. She was going to join Syaoran and his stressful life in about half a year.

"So tell me, beautiful, how is _your_ life going?" Syaoran interrupted her thoughts.

"Um…it is going okay."

"Wow, 'okay' is a much better adjective than 'all right'…" He said with sarcasm.

She wheeled her eyes and started to pout, "Fine…mother. My life is going in a better direction. Instead of speaking with a drunken man, I am now talking to a sarcastic guy." She smiled and began to laugh.

Syaoran could not help but laugh with her. By the time they stopped laughing, their food had arrived on a tray with Yukito carrying them. He was smiling as usual, "Hello, you love birds. Here is your food…oh, where are the other two?" Sakura and Syaoran blushed.

"We are not love birds," Syaoran replied first, "and don't know. I think they went outside."

Sakura giggled, "Yeah, 'outside' for some air." Syaoran wondered what she meant by that while Yukito chuckled in assurance.

"By the way, Yukito, why are you working here? I thought you had a permanent job at the club," asked Syaoran.

"Oh, well, it is simple. I have two jobs!" He alleged excitedly as he laid their food on the table.

Sakura and Syaoran cringed at his answer. Not that there is anything wrong with having more than one occupation, but the way he said it.

_Uh, I think he sounded…really…girly just now, _they thought.

"So…why don't you tell me something about that brother of yours, Sakura," said Yukito, looking at her so she would know that she had his full attention.

Syaoran raised an eyebrow at the sudden change of subject and wondered about Yukito's unexpected interest in Touya. "Wait…how _do_ you know about Sakura's brother?"

Yukito continued to carry his eerie smile on his face and replied, "We met at Starbucks when Sakura came in for work. I was talking with Meilin before and—"

"Hey! Waiter! Would you stop putting me off and give me my damn food!" said a customer in the other side of the restaurant. Sakura and Syaoran's gaze fell on the tray that Yukito was holding in his other hand. There it was, the man's food still steaming hot. "I'm so sorry both of you, gotta go before I get fired. We'll chat later. Ciao!" With a quick wave, he was off.

Sakura and Syaoran stared at him in disbelief and then stared at each other. Seconds later, their gazes suddenly fell to the table separating them; their faces tinted pink.

Sakura looked up at him and asked thoughtfully, "Do you think we should wait for the other two? It would be impolite to just eat without them."

Syaoran shrugged, "For all we know, they probably already skipped dinner and had dessert."

"Hoeh? Why would they…" Her eyes widened in realization of what he was implying. She then giggled. Syaoran smiled at her reaction and looked at her dreamily. Sakura felt his glance and stiffened, asking him, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

He replied gratefully, "That is because you look absolutely innocent and stunning, especially when you laugh."

Sakura flushed at his compliment and smiled, "Thank you."

He leaned in, resting his elbows on the table, "Just saying the truth. I am sure you hear every guy say flattering remarks as that all the time."

Sakura's facial expression went from dreamy to dreary, "I do, however, they only say them to get what they want. Even if they are true… women like to hear them, but the men saying them are not truthful." She stares at the wall as if trying to look into the past.

Syaoran sympathized with her, "But all men are not like that."

Sakura heaved a sigh, "I know…" She then zoned out and her eyes went blank, no longer shining. She mumbled, "If they aren't, they abandon you…"

Syaoran pondered about her 'unrelated' statement, but then he pitied her. Why was he so stupid? He had encouraged her to remember her somber years. He checked the door to see if maybe, just maybe, Touya and Meilin would walk in and help him to cheer up Sakura. Much to his luck, they came in laughing.

**TBC…**

* * *

Review please! **Thanks to the people who read too!** This story is kinda slow...for now, lol. 

**_Personal thanks to:_**  
**? (five 'question marks' person) -** Thanks for reviewing! Maybe you should stop putting question marks as your anonymous name...hehe.

**MiniSparky - **I'm glad you pointed out the obvious (major sarcasm statement, LOL). Thanks for the compliment and the review!

**FlowerLover - **eh...I have updated. Thanks for review!

**Lanny - **Of course it's not that hard to figure out...somethings will be obvious while...others will be big surprises. Even YOU won't know them! HAH! hehe, j/p. Thanks for the review.


	11. Ominous Presences

_Disclaimer:_ I do not own CCS! I do own the OCs (outside characters) though.

**Troubling Attractions – Chapter 10**

**+Happy Japan+ **_(afternoon)_

Tomoyo slumped on her couch in the living room, blinking tears and sighing exhaustion. She had not even bothered to brush her teeth, comb her hair, change her clothes or eat breakfast, though her natural beauty shined anyhow. In any case, she had nowhere else to go.

Her hand mechanically stretched to the telephone machine (next to her) and pressed 'play'. For about the 23th time that day/late morning, she had heard her conversation with that mysterious man and, each time, she was flabbergasted. '_…I_ _phoned to inform you that your friend and her brother **are** alive.'_ The words rang sanctuary.

Abruptly, Tomoyo's head collapsed onto her hands as if it suddenly grew heavy. She cried her heart out from relief, sorrow, passion and anger. From where those emotions came had no meaning to her now. She sobbed and wept. When she thought that she was done, she bawled, hearing the man's last words. _"You will just have to hope in your heart and… trust me."_

* * *

Eriol had been unsuccessful in investigating the disappearance of Sakura and Touya. He sat in his makeshift office, groaning in frustration. Everywhere he looked (so far) the places were clean, so clean that it almost seemed that other people were there before him to swipe the places. 

He was currently working as an underling for the FBI for almost two years, nearly before the time he and Tomoyo started "going out". 'We are dating but that doesn't mean we are together' as Tomoyo said.

He stood up, carrying his coffee jug to the vending machines to refill it. He sighed from fatigue and accidentally pressed the coffee button twice that over filled his jug, burning his hand, and making a mess on the floor. He yelped in pain, rapidly waving his hand, and appreciated that he is the only one in the hallway to hear it.

_-Great…_

_I just wasted 50 cents_

_-Now, I have to walk down four staircases to the restroom to get paper towels to clean this up_

_What a night_

After he finished cleaning, he put in another 50 cents making sure that he pushed the button only once to get his coffee. He sipped it while leisurely walking back to his small table.

Eriol leaned on his somewhat organized desk with his arms over his head in exhaustion. He was about to give up when an image of Tomoyo's crestfallen face emerged. He rapidly swung his head up, hitting his over-shading lamp. He once again yelped in pain, rubbing the backside of his sore head.

_-ow, ow, ow…ow_

_that's going to leave a mark_

_-ouch!_

_even my hair throbs_

Suddenly, an idea popped into his head.

_-That is it! Why didn't I think of that?_

_Because it was so simple, no one thought of it…_

_-…Until now…_

_Hmm…I wonder if you have to get a warrant to search an abandoned house_

**

* * *

+Sad Japan+_ (evening--the present)_ **

There is a sound of someone..or something lurking in a forsaken skyscraper. A man and a woman are standing at the roof level as if they were waiting for someone. The only source of light is the bright full moon.

As the wind blows, the woman's highlighted hair grazes along one side of her face, revealing an eye of ocher and charcoal. She stands leaning more of her weight on one foot than the other. She nearly camouflages with the darkness because of her wearing a spy-cat suit. It exposes her model figure as opposed to the man positioned next to her.

The man is well built and wearing a dark business suit. Saying that he has graying black hair, he is far older than the woman. The moonlight shows a scar over his cheek. and on his left eye. Unbelievably, that is his good eye.

Unexpectedly, a shadow swiftly jumps up from behind, flips over them, and kneels in front of them in less than 2 seconds. Its head moves up to reveal the face of a man, an ingenuous young man. As he rises slowly, one could tell he is fit and has a good tone showing through his top. He is also wearing black. He cocks his head to one side and beams.

The woman frowns, pulls out a gun and yells, "You are late, you moron!"

He smiles and then at supersonic speed, he is right behind her and puts his hands on hers, with one hand on her gun and the other at her neck with a switchblade. He whispers into her ear, "I'm sorry. I was caught up thinking about you." He then let go of her. She turns around to face him, and glares at him, accepting his pathetic apology. She puts away her gun, scoffing at his pitiful flirtatiousness.

The older man rolls his eyes in annoyance and interrupts the already awkward moment, "We have work to do. Now—"

"Hey!" The guy grows irritated quickly, "Why the hell are you calling on me now? I have a freaking life, you know. And don't we have six months to do this 'special mission'?" He never liked his so-called boss giving him orders, and demanding him to follow them.

"Stop interrupting me, boyoh! Now…we or rather you two have to get into character for this plan to work." He turns to the woman, "'Viper', you should go to New York and get in contact with 'Kitty'. She should fill you in." He then directs to the man, "And 'Snake', you go and get cozy with that 'special' couple here in Japan. I will arrange it so that we all meet in New York, eventually…" The man clasps his hands together, "Revenge is sweet."

It is Snake's turn to be annoyed, "What the hell do _I _get out of this?"

"Yes. What _do we_ get out of this?" Viper adds resting her hands on her hips.

The aggravated boss stares at them as if brainless is marked across their faces. "Both of you get to see your 'special people' again." He smirks at their unison reaction. He knows they could be heartless and kill even children without regret; however, 'Viper' always had a soft spot for her oldest sister and 'Snake' for his fiance.

Snake crosses his arms and nods at Viper accusingly, "Why does _she _go first? She may be my would-be sister-in-law according to the government but by blood, heh, she is not even on our family tree."

At this comment, Viper twirls her head so fast that her silky hair sways violently while she looks at him in skepticism. She whispers, "We are not really a family, stupid. It is just easier for that guy to 'persuade' us." She flicks her head towards their boss at the last sentence. "AND…our boss…uh, 'father' adopted me in order to gain full custody all those years ago."

"Enough! 'Viper', call 'Kitty' before you fly in. 'Snake', I suggest you begin working at that station soon. Are you both clear in your missions?"

They reluctantly nod.

**TBC…**

_**

* * *

Codename (hopefully the names explain themselves.) If not, then email me for clarifications. **(hopefully the names explain themselves.) If not, then email me for clarifications._

**_Kitty - _**female mercenary/agent  
**_Viper - _**female spy/agent  
**_Snake - _**male assassin/agent

Why do I even bother writing these author notes… Anyway, I apologize if you are confused. Feel free to email or review for any further clarifications. Hopefully, things will clear up later.


	12. Eriol's Interrogation

_Disclaimer: _Yes, you know the drill. You cannot sue me because I don't own CCS except the OCs (outside characters).

**Troubling Attractions -- Chapter 11**

+In NY at Olive Garden+ (nighttime)  
Meilin and Touya come in laughing hysterically. About what? Syaoran doesn't know and gazes at them dubiously. Sakura continues to mull over her sad-self until she hears Meilin's voice.

"So, did you two miss us?" asks Meilin with a big grin.

Syaoran gives her this are-you-sarcastically-kidding-me look and replies, "OoOh yeah, we grieved over your departure and yearned to have your presence once again."

Looking oblivious to his sarcasm, Meilin cocks her head to the side. "Wow, I didn't know you two loved me so much!"

"You just don't listen, do you?" inquires Syaoran as he dully stares at her.

Meilin chuckles. "Of course I listen, dear Cousin. I just refuse to understand your statement," says she, waving her finger side to side knowingly.

Intrigued, Sakura and Touya watch this display of unusual banter between distant relatives. Sakura laughs inwardly at the new strange atmosphere, "What did you and my brother do outside? You were out for a long while."

As Meilin opens her mouth to answer, Touya replies instead, "We stood by the curb to talk a bit and walked to the window to see what you two were doing. We spent most of the time spying on you and the brat though."

"Hey! Who are you calling a brat?" retorts Syaoran who is offended by Touya's crude remark.

Touya scoffs, "My apologies. I meant _Chinese_ brat." Syaoran growls and glares at him. Touya smirks and then frowns back at him. Sensing a brawl coming on, Meilin saves them again. "Okay, boys, let's sit down and eat. The food is getting cold." Meilin shoos Touya into the seat. He and Syaoran stop glaring and reluctantly comply with Meilin's request, or rather, command.

+Happy Japan+ (The next day)  
_BRIING! BRIING! BRIING!_

"Yes?"

"Hi Honey."

"Oh hello, Darling! Do you need something? Other than me, of course."

"Haha! No, I just wanted to know if you want Chinese or Italiantonight."

"Tonight?"

"Well, yes."

"Oh yeah, heh, I forgot about that when I heard your melodious voice."

"Without me, you'd fail to remember and get adrift all the time."

"Those are two of the many reasons why I need you. Well, is that everything?"

"Um, yes, anyway, I'd better let you go off with your work."

"I'll see you tomorrow. G'day, Hun."

"Good day!"

Eriol clicks off his cell phone as he spins his steering wheel to make a u-turn. He smiles to himself as he remembers Tomoyo's smiling face when he told her that he had a lead to Sakura and Touya's whereabouts. He wants to search Touya and Sakura's house, but he must first see if he can obtain any clues to their current location.

He drives for another four miles before he stops at a dappled house. It is a little quaint place with many, many trees and bushes around it. Since autumn is nearing, leaves of deep red, golden yellow and tangy brown are drifting downward randomly. However, the grass infested on the spacious property is still rich green.

Eriol checks his paper to see if he is at the correct house and to remind himself of the individual:

_Name: _Kyotashi Himura  
_Current Age: _27  
_DOB: _April 26  
_Weight: _154 lbs.  
_Height: _6'1"  
_Occupation: _Microsoft Computer Programmer  
_Marriage Status: _N/A  
_Address: _19535 Edo Avenue

One of Eriol's eyebrows arches up as he looks at the "Marriage Status", thinking that it is strange for a _man_ to say that it was "not available". If the man had put that his weight was "unavailable", Eriol would have assumed that the guy was a homosexual…

Eriol folds the information sheet and shoves it into his pocket. Giving the surrounding scene a homey feeling, a gust of wind brushes by him as he steps outside of his 2001 wannabe-Diablo Lamborghini. Walking to the front porch, Eriol heaves an anxious sigh.

_-This is the first person I have to question in my early pre-career_

_What an incredible sensation. I am excited and nervous; it is very similar to the time I first asked Tomoyo to go on a date_

_-Well…asking Tomoyo was actually better_

Eriol snaps out of his off-track thoughts and swiftly knocks on the black-tinted door. He waits for several seconds before knocking again. After five minutes, he is impatient and begins pounding at the door instead of knocking. When he is on his nineteenth knock, he groans and strides around the house.

Finding an open window on the second floor, he yells, "Hello? Is anyone home?"

With no answer, Eriol looks around and picks up a stone, throwing it through the gaping window by using his precise aim. He hears the rock hit from what sounds as a floor with a clunk. A figure appears at the window, scratching its messy head. It signals Eriol to go to the front door.

When Eriol reaches the door, the manly figure is leaning sleepily on the edge of the doorframe. Eriol eyes him questionably. The guy's scruffy (pillow) hair is an intense red color with black highlights. His eyes are an amazingly stunning green, glowing powerfully in the shade. He is tall…and in shape… Eriol breaks out of his odd trance once the man speaks, "Hey! Are you here because you have a job to do or because you want to stare at me?"

"Uh-um, I came to interrogate…" Eriol pulls out his info sheet to check the name, "Kyotashi Himura."

"Oh, yeah, that's me," Kyotashi yawns, "You must be Eriol Hiragizawa then."

"I called you earlier today." Eriol oddly brushes his bangs back.

"Heh, yeah, it's rather early for an examination. Don't you think so, officer-in-training?" asks Kyotashi, smiling slightly. He sees Eriol's questioning look and replies, "I know that because of your body language. I'm a very scrutinizing person."

"I see…", comments Eriol who is officially crept out.

"Do you want to question me outside in the stunning morning sky or do you wish to come in?"

"Um, I choose the house," says Eriol nervously pointing at the residence. Kyotashi laughs and welcomes Eriol into the house. Eriol walks in, and then Kyotashi closes the black-tinted door.

As Eriol enters Kyotashi's humble abode, he immediately notices paintings of all sizes embroidering the walls. "You paint, Mr. Himura?" asks Eriol as Kyotashi gestures him to the living room.

Kyotashi shrugs, "More or less. It has just been something that I've always done. Why?" He looks at Eriol, "Does it strike you as odd because I am a Microsoft employee?"

Surprised that Kyotashi knew what he was implying, Eriol remarks, "Well, yes. Not to offend you in any sense, but I am just curious about it."

"Heh, painting and drawing is just a hobby for me. I wouldn't be able to have to do them as a professional career although I believe I do them well. I need inspiration in order to paint and the stress of having to draw for a client who doesn't motivate me would, well, I wouldn't have any clients at all. I'd be on the streets, begging for food if I had chosen it as my profession."

Kyotashi amazes Eriol constantly. Almost everything he says just flows off his tongue like water and his musical tone makes his statements sound like poetry. Eriol replies, "Hm, I see. Well, do you mind if we start the questioning now and if I record it for further examination?"

Kyotashi smiles, "Nope and no. Do you want some refreshment before we start?"

Eriol waves his hand, declining, "No, I'd really like to get this done quickly."

Kyotashi laughs, "You have a big evening and you don't want to be late, right?" He smiles when a surprised Eriol gapes. "Well, have a seat, Mr. Hiragizawa."

Eriol plops on the comfy chair across from Kyotashi. He starts tentatively, "According to police records, you were friends with Touya Kinomoto. Is that correct?"

"Yes, we were also co-workers."

"Were you a witness the night Touya Kinomoto and his sister Sakura Kinomoto disappeared?"

"Yes," replies Kyotashi freely.

Eriol stares at him surprised. He had expected him to be more reserved, "Do you know what happened to them that night three years ago?"

"They left."

"'Left' to where?"

"I don't know."

"Then how were you involved in their disappearance?"

"Touya 'borrowed' my car that night. When he drove to my house, he looked worried, anxious and somewhat scared. He was breathing heavily at my doorstep, but managed to tell me to take care of his car while he borrowed mine and to pick it up at the airport. He didn't inform me of where or why he was going, yet I could hint that it was of grave importance."

"How did you know that his sister left with him?"

Kyotashi chuckled, "At first, I didn't know that he took his sister with him. However, after much thought, I believe that he left _with_ his sister _because_ of a dilemma concerning _her_. I also conclude that he, being a very defensive brother, was protecting Sakura _by_, mostly likely, leaving the country."

"Fascinating," comments Eriol who is quickly jotting down notes on a small notebook, "Do you know if they are still alive? Have they contacted you?"

"I do know that they are alive," responds Kyotashi with his green eyes sparkling, "Unfortunately, I can't answer that second question."

Eriol is appalled and rapidly rises from his seat, angry that he is so close to the truth but can't get it, "And why not?"

Kyotashi slightly smiles, crosses his husky arms, and leisurely leans back in his seat, "I am bounded by a promise of a dear friend, Mr. Hiragizawa."

**TBC…**

* * *

Kyotashi is based on my brother who is hilarious and very awesome although he gets on my nerves sometimes.** REVIEW PLEASE!**

Well...I really don't care that I hardly have any reviews...so I'm just gonna do this for me and maybe the few people who actually care enough. Gosh darn it, if my story sucks just tell me so and tell me how to fix it/make it better...


	13. Concluding Night, Unvailing Day

_Disclaimer: _I don't own CCS, blah, blah, bleh…OCs (outside characters) I do own, however.

( ) – clarifications

I apologize for the LONG delay. I was formerly uninspired and had major writer's block. Thanks for actually reading this fanfic. I really do APPRECIATE those of you who read and/or not review. **If you have fanfics, let me know and I'll read them! I really do like reading…even more than actually writing.**

RECAP: Previously, we saw/read about Eriol's interrogation with an interesting character, Kyotashi in the early morning. We now go back to Japan where it is evening.

**Troubling Attractions -- Chapter 12**

+At Olive Garden+ (still at night)

After their delicious dinner, Sakura, Syaoran, Meilin and Touya decide to chat for a while before they leave. However, no one knew how to start the conversation. They were in awkward positions: Syaoran likes Sakura but not her brother; Sakura is obviously rather fond of Syaoran; Meilin is some how caught in the middle of everything; and Touya likes Meilin, loves Sakura but despises Syaoran.

Meilin rests her head on her hand and stares at the ceiling wonderingly, "Hey, did anybody notice that we never received our drinks?"

Everyone's eyes widen in realization. Syaoran adds, "Actually, we weren't even _asked_ by our _dear _waiter about them."

Just then, Yukito passes by and Touya waves his hand, signaling for Yukito to come. Yukito nods his head and struts over, "Yes?"

"Where were our drinks?" asks Touya plainly.

"Oh!" exclaims Yukito smiling, "I can't believe I forgot to ask. I'm really sorry." He bows respectfully to them, and then gazes innocently at them, "If it isn't too late, do you want to order your drinks now?"

"Um, sure. We might be here a while," replies Sakura ingenuously.

Yukito grins, "Okay then. What do you want?" He begins to pull out a pen and a waiter's notebook, but then stops halfway, "Just tell me what drink you want."

"Uh, don't you need to write them down?"

"No, since I forgot to ask you in the first place, you all can have your drinks on the house!"

"That's very nice of you, Yukito," says Meilin.

Yukito chuckles, "I give _you _free drinks all the time at Revolution." Meilin gives him the why-did-you-have-to-tell-them-_that_ look, and everyone else laughs. Meilin childishly crosses her arms and pouts, "Hmph, meanie."

When the amusement passes, Yukito starts, "So, how about those drinks?"

Syaoran and Sakura reply, "Just water." They glance at each other and blush. Yukito smiles and then looks to Meilin and Touya, both wanted water. Yukito laughs quietly and winks, "Well, water is free anyway. I'll be right back people!" He leaves and Touya stares at Meilin awkwardly.

Meilin gives a quizzical expression, "What?"

"You have very strange friends."

"Oh, and I suppose _you _aren't one of them? What about your sister?"

"_I _am saner than the rest, and my sister isn't _totally _crazy."

"Heh, you've seen nothing yet," mumbles Meilin malevolently to herself.

Touya moves his head closer to her, "What was that?"

Awareness hits Meilin as she scoots away from him tensely, "Oh! It's nothing."

"Sure…I believe you," answers Touya sarcastically.

At that moment, Yukito comes back with a tray holding four glasses of water. He places one in front of each person and then he puts down the receipt. As he leaves, he calls out, "I'll be back in a jiffy for the bill."

Touya pulls out his wallet and about the take the receipt when Syaoran slams his hand over it. "I'll pay for it."

Touya sighs finally tired of the _Chinese _brat, "Look, little one, we split it half and half. Take it…or I'll make you." They glare at each other, feeling the tide of opposition through each other's eyes. Syaoran is the first to crack. "Fine!" He retracts his hand from the receipt and takes out his wallet as well.

After the guys compromised on the tip and price, they take long swigs of their drinks until only air remains in their glasses. Touya rests his head on the backrest while Syaoran still glares at him. Meilin gives a worried look and glances at Sakura.

Sakura takes a sip of her water as she glimpses at her wristwatch, "Well, I guess we should be leaving now. It's really late." She shows the time to Meilin. The digital numbers 9:30 blare at her. (Remember, they were there since 5:30; check Chapter 8)

Meilin jeers playfully, "You call that late?" Sakura nods innocently. Meilin gulps down all of her water and waves her hand carelessly, "Okay then. Let's go." Both Meilin and Sakura step out of the booth since they were on the outside.

When Meilin sees that Touya remains in la-la land and Syaoran is still frowning at him, she smiles wickedly at Sakura who is frightened of the look. Meilin whispers into her ear and Sakura shakes her head furiously. Sakura eventually gives in, seeing Meilin's puppy eyes. Sakura skids very closely to Syaoran. She places her leg over his, slowly rubbing her hand over the other side of his face and whispers lustfully, "Hey, you."

Syaoran, who was previously too distracted in glaring at Touya, flushes bright red and looks down at Sakura's face with her eyes seemingly glazed over with desire. He slightly pushes her off away and moves himself to the other side of the booth still furiously blushing, "S-Sakura! I-um you-ah…" He stops rambling when Sakura and Meilin start laughing.

Sakura gets out of the booth, "Wow, you were right, Meilin. He DOES want me badly. I can't believe it worked."

Meilin sniggers, "I can't believe you pulled it off."

"I…can't believe it's not butter." All three stare at Touya who is out of dreamland. He looks up at the queer faces, "What? I was reading this tag that is advertising margarine." He points to the card in his hand as he places it back on the table.

Meilin sighs, "Okay enough dilly-dallying. Let's go!" As they walk out, all except Touya wave good-bye to Yukito who is mostly waving to _him_. (Strangeness…)

All four walk down the main road to Starbucks. When they reach their destination, they stroll to the back parking lot. Sakura tiredly yawns, causing Meilin to laugh plainly. Sakura raises her arms childishly stretching and asks, "What?"

"You are such a kid sometimes, Sakura." Meilin smiles at her mother-like.

Sakura retorts, "Oh yeah? Well, at least I am not short like one."

"What are you exactly implying?" Meilin playfully frowns at her.

Sakura flips her hair. "Oh nothing, nothing at all, Meilin."

Meilin smirks, "Heh, it better be." She turns to the rest, "Well, I'll be going now. Thanks for the great evening. G'night and sweet dreams to all!"

She hugs Sakura and waves to Syaoran and Touya, but she stops when Touya calls to her. "Do you want me to walk you home?" asks Touya.

"No, don't worry about it." Meilin sees Touya's skeptical face and declares, "I can walk home by myself. I'm a big girl!"

Syaoran scoffs, "Height-wise or maturity-wise? Because I don't see either of those in you." Sakura laughs and Touya could not help chuckling.

Meilin childishly pouts and points a condemning finger at him, "Shut up! Who asked you?" With that, she struts off grumbling about Syaoran being a stupid and idiotic meanie.

"Syaoran, you shouldn't be so cruel to your cousin," states Touya, glaring at him although the joke was amusing.

"Calm down, lover boy, she knows I'm joking," says Syaoran putting up defensive hands. His attitude and attention span abruptly changes as he walks over to Sakura and grasps her hands together in his.

"Dear and sweet Sakura, this has been one of the most enjoyable evenings of my life. I hope that we shall be able to do this again. For now, I bid you farewell, lovely maiden." He kisses her cheek swiftly and strolls out of the parking lot. Halfway, he turns around and salutes to Touya, "See ya later, General!" Syaoran turns the corner out of sight.

Sakura raises her hands to her flushed cheeks and smiles dreamily. When she finishes reminiscing, she turns to her shocked and disturbed brother.

"Touya, you don't have to be so bitter," she smugly grins, "Just because he had the courage to kiss me and you didn't (to Meilin), does not make you any less of a man." She bursts out laughing, grabbing Touya's keys to open the 2000-Z8 BMW. When she is in the passenger seat, Touya grinds his teeth and roughly gets into his car, yanking the keys from Sakura.

+Happy Japan+ (still same morning, leaning towards afternoon)

Eriol frowns at Kyotashi once more. He had tried more than five times to find out if Kyotashi had any communication with Touya and Sakura, but to no avail. Finally, he had enough and pounced on him, bounding him to the floor in frustration.

Eriol about nearly knocked him unconscious, but stopped in the middle of his melee-punching attacks…not by his free will, of course. Kyotashi reflexively grabbed his hands and instinctively straddled Eriol to flip them over. Now, the positions have changed with Kyotashi dominating on top.

Even through his minor cuts and bruises, Kyotashi looks unaffected by them and smirks at Eriol pitifully. "Violence will get you nowhere, Mr. Hiragizawa," Kyotashi leans down to Eriol's face as if to intimidate him, "I understand your frustration; however, you cannot force me to break my vow. Your girlfriend's wish is going to have to wait."

Eyes wide, Eriol opens his mouth to retaliate, wondering how he knew that he had a girlfriend, but nothing comes. He continued to stare at Kyotashi for a minute until he realizes their awkward position. Kyotashi, on top of him, is…very disturbing. He shoves the feeling away, "Am I to assume that they have contacted you then?"

The red-black haired person gets off Eriol and turns to the window, "Heh, you don't know when to quit. Of course, I'm not encouraging that. I have told you that they possibly left the country, isn't that enough to find them?"

"What?"

"You are in training. You are not going get anywhere with the witnesses telling you everything. You must learn deductive reasoning if you want to survive in the police force unless you _want_ to stay as an underling."

Eriol kneads his eyebrows in concentration for a second. Then, a light bulb seemed to blink on, "You aren't just a Microsoft programmer. You kinda remind me of that fiction-English detective…Sherlock Holmes, I think."

Kyotashi turns to him and chuckles, "Finally, something is kicking in. You are right. I'm part of the CIA." He flashes his badge to Eriol who is astonished. Kyotashi smirks, "You know, 'Sherlock Holmes' needs his Watson. What do you say we team up?"

Eriol finally saw the pieces of this strange man come together. His _real _job explains for his unusual-people/body language-reading skills. He slowly nods his head. Kyotashi gestures Eriol upstairs, "Well, now that we are working together on this personal case, I can tell you what I know. Touya and Sakura have _not_ contacted me at all, but that does not mean I don't have an idea of where they are."

"Then what was that statement about you keeping your 'vow'?"

They suddenly stop on the stairs while Kyotashi sadly turns to him, "There are two reasons. The first is that Touya knows that I can discover his 'secret' location on my own and made me promise not to tell anyone of what I would know. Second is…" he hesitates in telling Eriol of his personal enigma, "that my deceased wife made me vow not to betray anyone by revealing his or her secrets."

Appalled, Eriol sympathizes with him. Now, he knows why Kyotashi made his 'marriage status' unavailable. However, there is much more to Kyotashi's decision of not disclosing his marriage status.

**TBC…**

Five pages…a lot of dialogue. Sorry for possible grammar and spelling errors. Personal thanks to the people who reviewed last chapter:  
**kouji –** finally updated…YAY!  
**Frosted BlossomZ –** thank you for your review. You re-inspired me **XD**

_Review if you like…_


	14. The New

_Disclaimer: _I don't own any of the CCS characters or even CCS show. THANK YOU!

**Troubling Attractions -- Chapter 13**

+++New York (early morning)+++  
Once they reach the apartment, Sakura immediately takes a shower, changes her clothes, brushes her teeth, hugs her brother, and goes to sleep. Touya does the same only at a far slower pace since he seems distracted with the thoughts of a certain woman…

Unknown to these peaceful people, un-welcomed guests, both of whom with feminine features seen in the slight moonlight, have decided to eavesdrop on their late evening activities. They are smirking eerily.

Many hours have passed, revealing the bright and lustful morning sun rising over the New York horizon. The two women have seemed to vanish along with the night, and Touya is the first to wake up at the sound of the doorbell. He did not sleep well with his mind wandering everywhere and the sudden heat of the apartment did not help him, so much so that he gets up with his toned-upper body bare (no shirt on). He groans and treads groggily over to it. He quickens his pace as the ringing grew more and more urgent every millisecond.

His temper rises and he yells, "ALL RIGHT! I'M—!" He stops mid-sentence as he opens the door, gawking at the piece of a woman before him. "Meilin?" he inquires.

The woman looks absolutely confused. She appears to have almost the same features as Meilin except for her purple eyes, brown-highlighted hair and smaller size. She stares at him innocently while slightly blushing from embarrassment, "Um, I'm sorry, did I disturb you? Is Meilin home?"

An eyebrow rises on Touya, "Uh, Meilin doesn't live here. Are you a relative of hers?"

She smiles from relief, "Yes! I'm her sister. Whew, I'm so glad that I met someone who knows her. Strange…the manager downstairs insisted that Meilin lived here. Does this mean that she comes by here often?" She asks suspiciously but in a playful manner.

Touya obliviously replies, "Yeah, she does. She's best friends with my little sister."

_Best friends_…those words play through the woman's head, having a strange ring to them. She grins lightly when she realized that she had been frowning, "Oh, I see. Well, my name is Min-li. Do you mind if I borrow your phone to call my _dear _sister who had _failed_ to give me her _correct _address?"

Touya chuckles, "Well, I'm not surprised. She tends to leave things last minute, even notifying people of important events and places." Min-li nods and walks into the apartment as Touya gestures her in.

After she calls Meilin who was 'grievously sorry' and announced that she was on her way, Sakura comes out after a nice shower. She wistfully walks by them, mumbling a good morning to both as she makes her way to the kitchen. Right when she disappears out of the room, she pops back in and almost runs into Min-li.

The next second, Sakura burst out laughing. Min-li frowns disdainfully, _rude…_she thought. Sakura sees this and quickly composes herself, "I'm sorry. You look so much like one of my friends. I was laughing at my own stupidity. I didn't mean to offend you."

Min-li inwardly smirks, _you have no idea how stupid you are…_She insincerely smiles, "Oh no, it's all right."

After this, the two women go to sit on the couches as Touya goes to the kitchen for refreshments. Min-li explains to Sakura that Meilin, her sister, had said for her to go the address of the apartment and that Meilin would be here waiting for her. Min-li also questions why Meilin didn't tell her the real address of her home. Just as Sakura shrugs and chuckles a bit, Touya comes back with juice drinks. After he puts the drinks on the coffee table, he rushes off to put on a shirt.

However, before he gets to his room, the doorbell painfully rings…again. Touya scowls knowingly. Just as the door cracks open, he is met with a strong force and jumped on by none other than Meilin. His back slammed into the floor, and their faces almost collide, being about 2 inches away from each other.

"Aw, shit-aki mushrooms, Mei! You scared the crap out of me!" exclaimed Touya while resting on both his elbows against the floor with Meilin on him and her arms around his neck. He is blushing furiously from the massive body-contact with his current infatuation.

Min-li's eyebrows furrow in speculation, shifting from the "interesting" scene to Sakura's amused yet disgusted facial expression. _Very interesting…_she thought.

+++Kyotashi's House in "Happy" Japan+++  
Eriol is astounded with all the "detective" rooms and equipment that Kyotashi had. There is a dark room (for photo developing), forensics lab, and a whole bunch of other rooms with "secret" police/military/detective things…they were hardcore stuff, things that Sherlock Holmes did not have, not that he needed them anyway.

They had arrived at a two-room, one side compiled with file cabinets and the other looked like a war room with geography items.

Kyotashi is amused further with Eriol's face of wonder and awe. He laughs, "Hey, Hiragizawa, this isn't heaven or anything like your girlfriend, so stop gawking."

Eriol quickly reacts while changing the subject, "Where are Touya and Sakura?"

The red-black haired guy shakes his head, "Time to test your skills, man." They trot over to the maps on the walls and tables. "If you were running from the Japanese Mafia, you would choose to live…?"

"…in a REALLY big place where it's hard to find me." Eriol sounds like a kid in his exaggeration of the word 'really'.

"Okay," Kyotashi, "Using this map of the world, which countries would you live in?"

Eriol examines the map through and through and points to Russia, China, Antarctica, and the United States. He reasoned that those were pretty big. He eliminated Russia and China because they were still too close to Japan, and crossed out Antarctica because…well…there wasn't really anything there and Touya and Sakura wouldn't even survive out there. Of course, the U.S. seemed more likely because it was the furthest away from Japan and what not.

Both begin to investigate and explore the maps to reduce the possible places for Touya and Sakura to reside. They concluded that those two would live in a state that was very urban. They make a list of states from most probable to least, the first being California…unfortunately for them, they are quite a bit off.

Now, that they both know approximately where the two missing people are, they posed to find the "why" of the situation. Why was the mafia after them in the first place? Well, it applies mostly to Sakura.

Kyotashi reveals some gaps, "According to my research, it has much to do with their father."

"But Kinomoto-sama is dead."

The other man inquiringly raises an eyebrow, "Or is he? Some divisions of the mafia are very twisted…like some Communists."

"What do you mean?" asks Eriol, his worst fears edging over.

"Well…simply put, they are very stubborn and don't play by the rules. If at first they don't succeed in whatever they are doing, they lie, cheat, steal, and definitely murder. However, I found out that Kinomoto-sama was-is too important for them to kill…at least not immediately."

Kyotashi watches Eriol's innocently bewildered face, smiling at how kawaii it looked. "Okay, let's try this again. If you were in the mafia, what is the most important thing to you…stereotypically?"

"Oh! Money!" Eriol smiles cheekily only to frown at the realization. "Kinomoto-sama owes the mafia money…and I bet a lot of it too if he really isn't dead yet. But, why make him fake his death, making his children pay? Why Sakura and not Touya? It doesn't make sense!" The blue-haired one scuffles his hair in frustration.

"Ah," notes Kyotashi, "Now you are understanding the demented organization even more. You see, the man in charge wants Fujitake-san to suffer for not returning the owed money…I'm assuming. What better way for him to suffer than to _not only_ keep him alive for torture _but also_ let him watch his most beloved people suffer? He is tormented physically, mentally, and emotionally: the best way of punishment."

Eriol is horribly disgusted, "GAH! That's just _sick_."

"Oh-noz sir, it is absolutely _dandy_," retorts Kyotashi sarcastically, giving Eriol the 'sparkle fingers'.

Eriol rolls his eyes. _This guy is as complicated as a girl…_he thought amusingly. "Anyway, how are we going to search for them in the U.S.? We don't have enough time to investigate the…" Eriol turns to the list and counts, "10 states that we guessed."

Kyotashi shrugs nonchalantly, "Pick the top five."

"You, punk, how can you do that so easily? How do you know they aren't in one of the next-top 5?"

"I don't." Kyotashi watches Eriol's head fall in exasperation, "We'll get nothing done if we don't take chances. Risk, that's part of the business, Eriol. You have to harness your courage, mold your instincts and trust your intuition. At this point, that's all we've got…with my brain, of course."

The other man still looks at him disbelievingly. For the rest of the day, they plan their route and connections for the United States: flight times, international passports, transportation within the states, etc. Everything seems to be in order after the blue-haired man left the older man's house, nearly midnight. Everything would be ready in a matter of hours. Something seemed to be missing though…

+++Happy Japan Airport, the next morning+++  
"I can't believe you made me do this!" yells the first voice, giving a female attendant flight tickets to board.

"What?" asks the second voice innocently although he was smiling inwardly.

"You know exactly what," glares the first, motioning his eyes to his right as he took his seat.

"Say, Eriol, is something the matter with your organs of vision?"

The blue-haired man stays silent until…"Is something wrong with your eyes, Eriol-kun?" adds a third voice, concernedly.

He sighs, "No…I'm all right, Tomoyo-chan."

"Then what was it that Kyotashi-san sa—"

"I assure you it's nothing!" Tomoyo flinches a bit, looking over to Kyotashi as if to ask "why is he upset" only to have the red-black haired man shrug in reply as he stuffs his carry-on into the upper compartment before taking a seat next to Eriol.

Eriol sighs again. He did not know how, but somehow the man to his left convinced him to bring his girlfriend (to his right in the window seat)…_with_ them. Kyotashi did not even fill Tomoyo in on anything other than "we've found them." That alone made the woman jump in anticipation and she had her duffle bag ready in 10 minutes flat. Eriol and Tomoyo missed their night together (with either Italian or Chinese food since they never quite established it in their conversation the morning before…common occurrence) since she was "informed" that morning. Kyotashi was gracious enough to drive to their house.

Another quality Eriol loved about Tomoyo: she was not the typical superficial girl who had to carry one luggage for clothes and another for accessories. In fact, why bother when she can easily make her own clothes, if needed; the essential make-up necessities were always in her purse. Her good nature scored her 2 months of "vacation", unknown to her boss that she was doing otherwise. Of course, she swayed herself to believe that sightseeing in the U.S. was technically touring…and that was equivalent to vacationing. She could not bring herself to think of completely lying to her employers.

First stop: the state of California in the United States of America

Destination of the LAX airport reached after about 13 hours of "Tomoyo-Eriol-Kyotashi-ness Time". Readers' imagination needed to fill in for that.

"Kyotashi, I think you forgot something important," states Eriol, grabbing their luggage from the moving ramp and almost falling into it because he caught one too late.

"What?"

Tomoyo chips in, "We don't know how to speak fluent English."

Kyo sighs, "Oh, c'mon you two! You haven't learned to have enough faith in me and my abilities?"

Eriol crooks an eyebrow, "What?" Kyotashi's last statement made no sense to him…was it even in Japanese?

"Oh! So, in other 'understandable' words, you understand and speak English!" exclaimed Tomoyo excitedly.

Eriol rolls his eyes. Kyotashi not only made his blood run cold from his scary 'abilities', but also boil for showing him up in front of his girlfriend…more than once. It is not that Eriol was worried or anything. Tomoyo would not cheat on him and Kyotashi apparently still clung to his deceased wife …yet that does not mean his mind cannot wonder 'what if'.

"Show off..." mumbles Eriol under his breath as he catches the last of the bags from the evil-silvery-mechanical ramp of the inevitable-death-of-him-someday. He is half-wondering how and why _he_ was the one getting their belongings. Then he remembered he volunteered and threatened Kyotashi. _Oh yea…_

Each person grabs his or her possessions and follows Kyotashi out of the airport, blinking from the strong glaring sunlight.

+++Sad Japan+++  
_BRIING…BRIING_

"You better have good news…" said a gruff and angry voice.

"Oh, believe me, step-father, it's all good. It seems everything here is established perfectly…with a few perks."

"Hm…what 'perks'?"

"I haven't been watching long, but it seems your daughter was correct…Sakura's brother has been definitely falling for her. I'll find out if Sakura has a lover. Is there anything from the ones in Japan?"

"They've moved…"

"What?"

"We've lost trace of them here…"

+++New York+++  
"You piss me off!" Syaoran yells as he tries to punch Meilin again who giggles humorously. Suddenly, her face becomes stern. She knees him in the stomach and then hits him across the face. He goes flying.

_This fight has been going on for a while now. Why doesn't Meilin just finish it already instead of toying with him, _thought Touya, _**I** want a piece of him._

Right when Syaoran gets off the ground, Meilin does her finishing combo: two round-house kicks, a knee-up, and a slam down with her elbow.

"K.O. Player 2 wins!" screams the automated announcer for the video game Marvel v. Capcom.

Everyone (Sakura, Touya, Meilin, Min-li, and Yukito) laughs at Syaoran's defeated expression, noting that he looked cute in doing so. The other gamers in the arcade stare over, wondering what is so comical about a fighting game.

**TBC…**

* * *

Thanks to the people who reviewed! Yeah...took me a very long time for this. I really appreciate those who are still interested in reading this fanfic. 


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